Ignorance Is Not Always Bliss
by JapaneseAnimeFreak16
Summary: I'm over two hundred years old, Miroku. I've seen humans fall in love and stay silent only to end up hurting each other and dying with regrets. As annoying as humans can be, I don't want you and Sango to end up the same way. You only have one lifetime.


**Author's Note:** Hey! I'm not dead after a month of not updating ANYTHING and I'm really sorry for that. I've hit a major writer's block and it's really eating at me, so I decided to re-do all my old stories to hopefully jumpstart the old noggin' lol This was my FIRST fanfition EVER and I've gotta say, it was pretty bad ^.^' lol Hopefully, this version is better. I know it has more angst and is a little darker than the original, but I decided that this kind of conversation needed the darker undertone :P Thanks for the reviews/faves and stuff, and hopefully this is better! Wow I'm really hopeful xD

**Rating: K+** (just to be safe :P)

**Warnings:** Some angst if you squint, drama, very very VERY slight Kagome/Sango bashing but it's not really bashing, and NO YAOI! This is NOT a Miroku/Inuyasha fic even though they are kinda hot lol Some OOC since Inyuasha's gonna be pretty serious here.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Inuyasha :'(

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><p>Inuyasha held in a sigh as he lazily relaxed on the bank of a large, shimmering lake. Unlike many others, the water didn't smell contaminated and the breeze was comfortably cool. His hands and arms were folded behind his head as a makeshift pillow, making it easier to bear listening to another argument over human conflicts like love and emotions. He snorted derisively.<p>

Sometimes he really hated his acute hearing.

Miroku, resident flirt and supposed monk, had predictably tried to seduce a young, pretty woman. Again. In front of Sango. _Again_.

Dumbass.

Inuyasha often wondered if his perverted companion was secretly masochistic but quickly strayed from those thoughts – he _really_ didn't want to know.

However, his lecherous acts had led to Kagome stepping in as peacemaker, trying to prevent an enraged Demon Slayer from giving the poor, idiotic monk a concussion. Shippo tried to help but inadvertently fanned the flames, so to speak, leading to a slightly larger and more heated argument than usual. Kirara merely rolled her eyes and scratched her ear contentedly, all too used to these little arguments.

Thankfully, the half-demon was able to slip away unnoticed in order to unwind for a little bit and, judging by how hard it was to keep his eyes open, perhaps sleep as well. It sounded like a nice idea and the warm sun wasn't deterring him from those thoughts. The others wouldn't bother him with matters concerning their disturbingly dramatic love problems – something he was very relieved about – since he was too 'dense' to understand.

Inuyasha let a small, secretive smile cross his lips at the thought.

He learned early on that staying out of these little spats would save him countless headaches and embarrassments – because, really, Kagome would never let him off the hook in helping her with her silly little love schemes. Sure, sometimes he felt a fleeting bit of guilt at deceiving his friends but when another pretty girl walked by, he rolled his eyes and moved on while another fight started behind him.

He cared about his friends and their well being, he really did, but sometimes they drove him insane with how…_human_ they acted.

Shippo was too young to understand much of what was going on – no, his little crushes did not count – and the little fox demon fed off of Kagome's opinions so he couldn't be blamed completely. Kirara had a choice between a human she'd grown fond of or the human her loyalties lay with – sure, she was sometimes irritated with the yelling and frigid silences as well but stayed faithfully by Sangos' side.

The other three…Inuyasha didn't even want to _start_ since they _were_ human and it would give him a headache just thinking about it.

The sound of footsteps drew Inuyasha's attention to the person, knowing who it was despite keeping his eyes closed. The half-demon cracked an eye open to see Miroku plop down beside him with a sullen look on his face as well as a bright red handprint on his right cheek.

The monk turned to him with a look of honest confusion and innocent, almost sad, curiosity, "What did I do this time?" Inuyasha was torn between laughing at the irony of it all, punching the idiot, or face-palming.

He settled for grunting in annoyance. "Why're you asking me?"

Miroku squirmed a bit where he sat. After a short silence, he replied, "Well, because I value your opinion."

It took almost every ounce of self-control he had not to laugh that time. Another glance at his companion made Inuyasha sigh, _'Man, he's serious. Must be pretty desperate to come to _me_ for advice.' _

For a moment, the half-demon wondered if he should give his friend a word of advice or a nudge in the right direction. That wouldn't be _too _bad, right? Then again, this was pretty simple stuff, they just liked making it more complicated. All this trouble for something so obvious was starting to grate on his nerves as well as the secretive giggles behind the bushes a few yards away.

Inuyasha's ear twitched slightly when he heard the hushed words and rustled leaves, "Miroku's a real idiot to go to _Inuyasha_ of all people for advice…" Shippo snickered.

"Yeah, everyone knows how dense Inuyasha is. Why even bother? A rock would give better advice." Sango commented quietly, with another breathless giggle. Kirara gave a small, admonishing purr that went unnoticed.

That caught the half-demons attention and he couldn't help but grimace. _'Guess she's not as irritated as I thought.'_ he bristled in irritation.

"That's mean! But its kinda true. Ignorance is bliss after all." Kagome's voice agreed, trying to stay quiet as well despite the fact that, hello, his hearing was really _really_ good.

He could practically feel his blood pressure rising, especially at that last comment. Ignorant, was he? Che, with all her expertise in love and romance, look how far the on again off again couple had gotten – not very far at all. "If you want my opinion," Inuyasha started gruffly, hearing shh-ing sounds coming from the bush, "I think you and Sango are pretty damn stupid and Kagome and Shippo aren't helping at all."

A stunned silence followed.

Before Miroku could retort or even make a sound, Inuyasha continued, "I don't know what you feel for her or what she feels for you, but this crap has got to stop." He turned slightly to glare at the monk, "You two made your peace with the fact that you want to live together and make lots of little monks and demon slayers when we kill Naraku so why not enjoy it by _not_ pissing her off so damn much? If you two pretend that you don't have feelings for each other just because it could 'interfere' with a fight it doesn't mean you'll react any differently when either one of you is attacked."

Miroku stared uncomprehendingly, imitating a fish opening and closing its' mouth.

"And even if you two _didn't_ love each other, then she'd still slap you for being a perverted, crude, play-boy idiot instead of a regular perverted idiot. At least if you admit you care for her more than some random girl on the street then you might not get slapped as much or as hard the next time you try to grope her."

Miroku stared.

"And don't even get me started on Kagome and Shippo and their ridiculous notions about romance and whatever the hell else she always spouts. This isn't a fairy tale where everything turns out happy in the end because you want it to, you have to work for it and if commitment is what has you acting like an idiot, then don't even bother going after her anymore."

A glance at the statue-like monk told Inuyasha all he needed to know. Maybe one more little nudge would do the trick.

The half-demon yawned as if he were bored with the subject, "Then again, you could always let that prince sweep her off her feet. Or some other guy she sees on the road. Or is it that you _like _seeing her hurt? Does that get you excited, or something. Do you _like_ making her cry-"

"Enough!" Miroku barked angrily, his fist tightening around his staff till his knuckles turned white. His jaw was clenched angrily and by the look in his eye, he was feeling anything but holy. "How can you say such things, Inuyasha? Do you honestly believe I would ever intentionally hurt Sango?"

Inuyasha raised an uninterested eyebrow, "How else would you explain your obvious disregard for her feelings?"

Miroku stared hard at him with darkened eyes before looking away, obviously ashamed of losing his temper for a moment. "I don't mean to disregard her feelings. I never mean to hurt her." He searched the waters as if looking for the answers in their depths. He let out a sigh that sounded far too old for his age, "I guess it's because…if Naraku or some other demon succeeds in taking my life, maybe she will not feel as much pain as she might losing a comrade."

Inuyasha watched him quietly, searching for something. "That's not all, is it." Miroku kept his gaze on the water and the half-demon could feel realization dawn on him. "You're afraid that, even if we defeat Naraku, even if the spell cast on your hand is supposed to be broken, it won't be." He grimaced, "You don't your children to bare the same burden as you or your father because, ultimately, Sango would lose another family."

They sat in silence for a while, the understanding tinged with the sadness of the truth it could hold. Inuyasha felt a bit of his respect for the monk rise but it didn't get rid of the depression and hurt that lingered in the air. "All the more reason to go for it." He commented.

Miroku's gaze turned back to him, clouded with confusion, before it cleared and he was left with something lighter. He nodded once and gave a small smile, "Thanks."

Inuyasha raised an eyebrow then rolled his eyes with an irritated huff, "Humans are so irritating."

For a moment, Miroku was quiet. It was strange and off-balancing seeing his usually gruff, explosive companion so calm and almost somber. The monk sat quietly in contemplation for a moment before asking, "If you knew all this why didn't you say something before?"_ 'Why not end this sooner…?'_ was the silent question.

Content with the quieted rustling in the bushes, Inuyasha snorted, "And get sucked up into your messed up little drama? No thanks. I've got my own problems to deal with."

"You mean Kagome and Kikyo?" the monk prodded.

"…you came to me with your problems, not the other way around." was the terse reply.

There were small breaths of surprise a few yards away.

Looking properly chastised, Miroku nodded and, with his curiosity outweighing his discomfort, asked with a bit of caution, "How do you know so much about this then? How Sango and I…feel, I mean."

Inuyasha was quiet for a moment, his expression weary and his eyes stormy with grief – for a split-second, Miroku was taken aback by how much older the half-demon seemed – before he sighed tiredly, "I'm over two hundred years old, Miroku. I've seen humans fall in love and stay quiet only to end up hurting each other and dying with regrets. As annoying as humans can be, I don't want you and Sango to end up the same way. You only have one lifetime." He glanced at the sky, "I've been through it and I don't want to see my mistakes repeated in front of me." the half demon looked back at his friend who was watching the river intently, "I've learned is life is too short. Maybe not for me, but even I won't live forever."

Miroku couldn't look at his friends' pained expression any longer, feeling regret, gratitude, and a myriad of other emotions swell in his chest. He knew Inuyasha was older than any of them, but he never really gave a thought as to what his friend had actually gone through in his extended and obviously harsh existence. Now he could only berate himself for giving his friend grief over his two 'girlfriends', finally realizing how painful it must've been for Inuyasha to see his dead lover reincarnated in another. He may have acted like a child, but the monk had a sneaking suspicion that the act was more for them and Shippo than anything else.

A strong wave of curiosity compelled the monk to ask again with a more serious expression, "If you knew all this…why not say something earlier?"

The silver-haired half-demon was tempted to let out a frustrated sigh but resisted, "I already told you. I didn't want to get involved with human issues."

A glance at Miroku's unrelenting expression told him the monk wasn't taking that for an answer.

He did sigh this time before replying, "I couldn't say anything before because you wouldn't have taken my words to heart. You two were too young and your feelings too undeveloped for my advice to have any real effect and I didn't feel like wasting my breath on something that was probably just attraction."

The raven-haired man looked back at his friend with a sad and earnest expression, "I'm sorry, Inuyasha."

Inuyasha glanced at him and snorted, "What're you sorry for?"

Miroku shifted uncomfortably, suddenly feeling like he was talking to an elder instead of a friend, "Well, for bothering you with such trivial matters when you've had your fair share of problems…for not trusting your judgment…" he finished quietly with no small amount of guilt, "and for bringing up unpleasant memories."

"Don't apologize for things that aren't your fault." A companionable silence fell over them. Inuyasha noted with a bit of amusement that the rustling in the bushes had stilled almost completely – he wasn't sure if it was from surprise, regret, or reflection, but he was thankful for the quiet lull they had fallen into. His eyelids became heavy again, Miroku's agitated energy finally calming into content and gratitude, before murmuring loud enough for the eavesdroppers to hear, "Just goes to show who the ignorant ones really are."

Miroku blinked at that, but smiled bittersweetly. Before Inuyasha completely drifted off, he the monk agreed quietly, looking at the sky and watching the clouds pass by, "Yes, I suppose it does."

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><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong> Okay, I made Inuyasha a little more OOC than I expected but I just think that he's lived for 200 years (not counting the 50 that he was pinned to the sacred tree) and that he's had a lot more life experience than he leads on.

This is just my opinion so don't get your undies in a bunch if you disagree, THIS IS JUST A FANFIC! Thanks for reading! Also, sorry to those Sango or Kagome fans that feel offended but I just don't really like those two and this is my story, I can do whatever the hell I want :P

Thanks and R&R! I'd like to hear your thoughts (especially if you've read the original and see this new one ^.^) I hope my skill has gotten better :P PS I kinda rushed this cause I was so excited so sorry for any mistakes ;P


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